Court declines plea to stop release of 'Match Fixing' film
The Bombay High Court has rejected a petition to stop the release of the upcoming film Match Fixing - The Nation at Stake. The plea was moved by Lt Col Prasad Purohit, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, who feared the film could affect his trial and tarnish his image. However, the court on Thursday ruled these fears were baseless as the movie is a "work of fiction."
'Match Fixing' is based on a book, clarified producer
Per a report, the producer of Match Fixing informed the court that the film was a work of fiction, inspired by a book already in the market. A disclaimer will be shown at the start of the film to clarify the same. After hearing these arguments, the court suggested minor modifications to this disclaimer, which the producer accepted. To note, the movie is said to be the dramatized version of the book The Game Behind Saffron Terror.
'Entire apprehension of the petitioner is wholly misconceived': Court
The bench, which included Justices BP Colabawalla and Somasekhar Sunderesan, said, "We do not think that the apprehension of the petitioner is well-founded. The movie is based on fiction and hence there can be no apprehension that the trial...would get affected." They added, "The entire apprehension of the petitioner is wholly misconceived. The petition is dismissed." Notably, the book explores alleged political conspiracies and cross-border intrigue involving intelligence agencies of India and Pakistan.
Court rejected plea to delay film due to elections
Purohit's lawyer, Harish Pandya, sought a stay on the film's release till after the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections, claiming, "saffron terror is projected in the movie." The court rejected this, saying, "No chance. We're not going to hold film producers at ransom only because of elections. What have elections got to do with this? The book has been out for years." Directed by Kedaar Gaekwad, it was set for Friday release but BookMyShow shows no watch options for it now..
